INNEO: at the beating heart of German industry

1207/2010

The Top 100 accolade goes to the most innovative firms in the country. This is the seventh year running that INNEO Solutions GmbH has been selected as a prize-winner.

Ellwangen – A resourceful workforce, the courage to break new ground and the creative marketing of new products are among the factors that have catapulted the company into the list of the 100 most innovative firms in Germany. Lothar Späth presented INNEO with the prestigious Top 100 award in Rostock-Warnemünde on 01.07.2010.

230 creative members of staff are constantly contributing new ideas to the Ellwangen-based firm, which creates IT solutions for product developments and project management. That is why INNEO's Managing Director Helmut Haas values a good climate of innovation. To encourage their creativity, he regularly holds events and workshops for all employees from the company's twelve sites. "It is important to us that our employees meet up as it fosters a stronger sense of team spirit", said Haas. He budgets up to 34 days of training per year for each employee, which secured second place for his company in the Top 100 category “Climate of Innovation”.

Good ideas also call for good innovations marketing. The marketing department, which is headed up by Markus Hannemann, therefore involves customers and business partners at an early stage. Regular information and technology days take place at INNEO's different sites, which existing and prospective customers can attend for free. These interactive events enable participants to test out the beta version of new software and give direct feedback, for example. The INNEO employees discuss any criticism and suggestions for improvement straightaway and are happy to act on them.

The Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration scrutinised the innovative capabilities of 248 small and medium-sized German firms over a period of several months. The 100 best companies – INNEO among them – bear the Top 100 seal of approval for one year. "Good ideas that generate a favourable market response don't just appear out of thin air. We work hard every single day to come up with them. We are, of course, delighted that all this commitment is now being rewarded because it shows that we're on the right track. In a certain sense it also demonstrates that we won't run out of good ideas in future", enthused Haas.

The Top 100 prize-winning firms employ a total of 32,500 people throughout Germany. These members of staff work tenaciously to find solutions to challenging problems and are not afraid to think “out of the box” because their employers consistently adopt a policy of innovations management that creates the ideal conditions in which to nurture creativity and get the very best out of the workforce. These firms are therefore a key driver of the German economy, generating total revenues of €11.1 billion in 2009. 42 of the Top 100 prize-winners in 2010 are number one in their respective sector in Germany, and ten of them are global market leaders. The fact that 60 of this year's prize-winners are family-owned businesses shows that a sense of tradition and the willingness to change are not mutually exclusive. 86 of the 100 firms have grown faster than the average for their respective sectors over the past three years.

Further information on INNEO, the other 99 prize-winning firms and the Top 100 project can be found at www.top100.de.